Officers say the body found yesterday is that of worker Derek Moore, 62.

Bodies found earlier this week are thought to be that of his colleagues William Barks, 51, and Dorothy Bailey, 62, who lived in a cottage next to the mill.

Police and firefighters are continuing their search for the final lost worker Jason Shingler, 38, who grew up in North Rode.

In a statement last night, Cheshire police said: “Following a Home Office post mortem the coroner has confirmed that the body that was found earlier today, Thursday 23 July, is that of Mr Derek Moore, aged 62.

“Mr Moore’s family have been fully updated on this development. Family Liaison Officers continue to work closely with all those affected continue to work with them to offer them all the advice and support they need during what is a very difficult time.”

Rescue teams at the site of the Wood Flour Mill gained new access to an area of the site where they are focusing their search after dismantling large silos.

They are tunnelling through the debris to the location where they think they will find the fourth and final body of the workers who went missing when the explosion happened last Friday.

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Paul Hancock, chief fire officer at Cheshire Fire and Rescue, spoke to media last night to confirm finding the fourth body could be hours away.

He said: “We have two new points of access and are in the process of burrowing through the rubble.

“We are confident we know the location of the fourth person. It’s very challenging circumstances to get to the person, a very difficult extraction from a significant collapse.

“Most of the debris is being removed by hand, it’s very humid and confined down there for the rescue teams. We hope in the next few hours to get to the fourth person.”

Families of the four victims gathered at Bosley Methodist Chapel yesterday and went to visit the mill site, leaving floral tributes at the scene.

Assistant Chief Constable Guy Hindle confirmed that the body found on Tuesday morning was probably that of Mrs Bailey and that the third body is at Royal Liverpool Hospital where tests are ongoing.

He said: “All four families went to the methodist chapel and to visit the scene today with family liaison officers.

“All families were impressed with the commitment of the fire service and colleagues.

“I hope they got some comfort from the visit.”

Rev John Harries, from Bosley St Mary’s Church and who serves other nearby churches, spoke after going to the site with the families of the victims today.

He said: “The emergency services and family liaison officers etc have all been unbelievably wonderful and supportive, second to none.

“The way they are caring for the families is truly wonderful.

“It was a distressing time to go to the site this morning. The families were truly shocked at what they saw and had the opportunity to leave flowers which was very important and hard to do.

“They were able to see where the bodies had been recovered and ask questions."

“It’s helping them to grieve.

“There was a big explosion but where were their loved ones, did they suffer, was there anything which could be done? There are so many questions.

“This is a small community but it’s like a family, who have pulled together and it has made us stronger. Everyone feels supported by the way people are reaching out.”

Meanwhile, the company which runs the mill – Wood Treatment Ltd – put out a statement.

It read: “We are devastated to have received confirmation that at least three of our colleagues have died in this incident and one is still missing. They were all highly valued members of staff and our thoughts and deepest sympathies are with their families at this difficult time.

(Image: Dominic Salter)

“The mill has been part of village life in Bosley for almost 90 years and we share the pain of the community. We have made contact with all four families and are discussing how best we can help them. We are also supporting our other employees and a counselling service is available for anyone who wishes to use it. Our primary focus remains supporting the families of those affected, our employees and the local community as best we can while our site and facilities remain closed.

“We are absolutely committed to establishing the cause of this incident and will continue to co-operate fully with the emergency services and Health and Safety Executive. Company staff have been on site since last Friday assisting the authorities.

“We take the safety of our employees extremely seriously but it would be inappropriate to speculate about the circumstances of this incident until the full investigation is complete.”